She tried to comb the fingers of the broken arm through her hair and gave up after a moment. “I should just cut it all off,” she muttered, frustrated. “Venice? Really Venice? I haven’t been out of the country since … god, years ago.” Looking at her hands in her lap, Summer added, “I hate being this helpless to even take care of myself. I can barely even brush my own hair.”
“Really Venice,” Tony replied, as he somewhat reluctantly removed the cat from his lap and got to his feet. He stretched, and set about pulling off his tie, while he asked, “Where do you keep your hairbrush stashed?” He draped his tie over her head, because apparently that was the most convenient place to put it at the moment. Heaven forbid he just leave it on the coffee table.
Automatically, she replied, “Bathroom counter, on top of the mirror,” before her brain caught up. Snatching the tie off her head, she blinked up at him. “Why?” Helios stretched in imitation of Tony, before putting his tail in the air and falling over with a soft thump, belly up.
Tony disappeared into the bathroom, calling, “You’re threatening to chop your hair off,” in reply. He emerged a moment later, passing the hairbrush from one hand to the other. “I like your hair. Or have you not noticed that I play with it at the slightest provocation?”
“Things have been so crazy lately, I guess I forgot.” Summer looped the tie around her fingers, then tried, awkwardly, to tie herself up with it, before giving up and hanging it off the arm of the sofa. Running her hand along the back of her neck, she pulled the mass of hair over one shoulder into her lap, then held out her hand for the brush.
She tried to comb the fingers of the broken arm through her hair and gave up after a moment. “I should just cut it all off,” she muttered, frustrated. “Venice? Really Venice? I haven’t been out of the country since … god, years ago.” Looking at her hands in her lap, Summer added, “I hate being this helpless to even take care of myself. I can barely even brush my own hair.”
“Really Venice,” Tony replied, as he somewhat reluctantly removed the cat from his lap and got to his feet. He stretched, and set about pulling off his tie, while he asked, “Where do you keep your hairbrush stashed?” He draped his tie over her head, because apparently that was the most convenient place to put it at the moment. Heaven forbid he just leave it on the coffee table.
Automatically, she replied, “Bathroom counter, on top of the mirror,” before her brain caught up. Snatching the tie off her head, she blinked up at him. “Why?” Helios stretched in imitation of Tony, before putting his tail in the air and falling over with a soft thump, belly up.
“Not exactly the point.” She scratched the base of his ears again. “I’m quite sure it would take you two minutes to come up with some way to keep working.” She didn’t say anything else for a long moment. Then, very quietly, “Do you think, maybe, we could go off somewhere, just the two of us, for a couple days?”
Tony hummed again, low and content, and shifted to fidget into a more comfortable position. At her question, he opened one eye to look at her again, after a moment finally saying, “I guess, I don’t see why not.”
“I thought …. I kinda want to see one of your other houses, and we’ve both been under a lot of stress lately.” Summer pulled her hand away from his kitty ears to tuck her hair behind her ear. A strand of it got caught in her fingernails, and she jerked at it, pulling at the muscles in her stomach, which then complained bitterly. “Ow, fuck, ow ow, get off DAMMIT,” she wailed, uncurling from Tony to try to untangle the lock of hair from her hand. “Help?”
Tony stared at her for a moment, quietly wondering how she had even managed to do that. He settled Helios down on his lap, and reached over to untangle her hand from her hair, musing, “Venice is nice. And I haven’t been there in a while. The last attempt to suggest a trip to Venice didn’t go so well, and I never really found a good time to broach it again after that.”
She tried to comb the fingers of the broken arm through her hair and gave up after a moment. “I should just cut it all off,” she muttered, frustrated. “Venice? Really Venice? I haven’t been out of the country since … god, years ago.” Looking at her hands in her lap, Summer added, “I hate being this helpless to even take care of myself. I can barely even brush my own hair.”
Summer rubbed her nose against his skull. “I wanted to share. It’s much quieter in my head now.” She sighed softly. “Can we do this more often? Just cuddle?”
“Gonna need something to keep me entertained when there’re no ears to pet,” he pointed out, eyes closed again. After all, even hair petting could only keep him stationary for so long.
Summer laughed. “Same for me. ‘s why I texted you. I can’t do any kind of work while I’m in this cast, anyway.” Kissing the top of his head, she went on, “So what can we amuse ourselves with? Can I lay my head in your lap while Dummy holds a screen for you?”
“Dummy would probably get bored,” Tony replied wryly, “but Butterfingers or You could probably manage it, yes.” Or he would just take a tablet with him. Whichever struck him first at the time.
“Not exactly the point.” She scratched the base of his ears again. “I’m quite sure it would take you two minutes to come up with some way to keep working.” She didn’t say anything else for a long moment. Then, very quietly, “Do you think, maybe, we could go off somewhere, just the two of us, for a couple days?”
Summer rubbed her nose against his skull. “I wanted to share. It’s much quieter in my head now.” She sighed softly. “Can we do this more often? Just cuddle?”
“Gonna need something to keep me entertained when there’re no ears to pet,” he pointed out, eyes closed again. After all, even hair petting could only keep him stationary for so long.
Summer laughed. “Same for me. ‘s why I texted you. I can’t do any kind of work while I’m in this cast, anyway.” Kissing the top of his head, she went on, “So what can we amuse ourselves with? Can I lay my head in your lap while Dummy holds a screen for you?”
Curling over, she laid her cheek against the top of his head and closed her eyes. Gentle fingers continued to stroke one ear, smiling a little whenever it twitched under her hand. For the first time in a week she didn’t feel the weight of the world on her shoulders, tucked up against one of the men she loved. Wanting to share it, Summer spilled a light projection into Tony; love and calmness and peacefulness.
Tony’s ears flattened for a moment, and the end of his tail twitched rapidly a few times as he was taken off guard by the unexpected mental intrusion. For half a second he contemplated being perturbed, before he just…didn’t feel like it, and instead he gave a content hum—no it was not a purr, there was absolutely nothing feline about the noise, not at all—and leaned his head into her hand.
His little purr-sound brought the smile to her lips again. She scratched the base of his ears, fingers deep in his hair, and turned her face to press her nose into his hair as well. “This is perfect.”
“You’re supposed to ask before you do that,” he reminded her quietly, though he sounded far too content for it to be considered a warning or scolding. He cracked one eye half open to look up at her. “How’s the hamster now?”
Summer rubbed her nose against his skull. “I wanted to share. It’s much quieter in my head now.” She sighed softly. “Can we do this more often? Just cuddle?”
Curling over, she laid her cheek against the top of his head and closed her eyes. Gentle fingers continued to stroke one ear, smiling a little whenever it twitched under her hand. For the first time in a week she didn’t feel the weight of the world on her shoulders, tucked up against one of the men she loved. Wanting to share it, Summer spilled a light projection into Tony; love and calmness and peacefulness.
Tony’s ears flattened for a moment, and the end of his tail twitched rapidly a few times as he was taken off guard by the unexpected mental intrusion. For half a second he contemplated being perturbed, before he just…didn’t feel like it, and instead he gave a content hum—no it was not a purr, there was absolutely nothing feline about the noise, not at all—and leaned his head into her hand.
His little purr-sound brought the smile to her lips again. She scratched the base of his ears, fingers deep in his hair, and turned her face to press her nose into his hair as well. “This is perfect.”
Summer bit her lips, trying not to laugh again. It made her sides hurt. “You can bring him with you, you know,” she pointed out. “It’ll be like a petting circle. Besides, Helios doesn’t even laugh at himself. Come on … I can see your ears twitching. And you know I like to play with your hair.”
In the end, the lure of petting was too strong. He shifted his hold on the cat and wandered over to Summer, and lowered himself down so he was sitting on the floor by her legs, leaning back against the couch, because that seemed like the done thing to do. Still, he added, “My ears are no indication of my interest. I can’t control them.”
“That,” Summer said, stroking a fingertip along one edge, “is exactly why they are an indicator.” Delicately, she cupped a hand around one ear, brushing upward, smiling at the softness. Long, slow strokes along the length of the ear, while her other hand, arm encased in its cast, buried itself in Tony’s hair, fingertips rubbing his scalp. “So beautiful,” she murmured.
“Hm,” Tony hummed in reply to the last comment, a content half smile tugging at one side of his mouth. He was still listening, for now, at least. How much longer that would last, that was an entirely different story.
Curling over, she laid her cheek against the top of his head and closed her eyes. Gentle fingers continued to stroke one ear, smiling a little whenever it twitched under her hand. For the first time in a week she didn’t feel the weight of the world on her shoulders, tucked up against one of the men she loved. Wanting to share it, Summer spilled a light projection into Tony; love and calmness and peacefulness.
Summer bit her lips, trying not to laugh again. It made her sides hurt. “You can bring him with you, you know,” she pointed out. “It’ll be like a petting circle. Besides, Helios doesn’t even laugh at himself. Come on … I can see your ears twitching. And you know I like to play with your hair.”
In the end, the lure of petting was too strong. He shifted his hold on the cat and wandered over to Summer, and lowered himself down so he was sitting on the floor by her legs, leaning back against the couch, because that seemed like the done thing to do. Still, he added, “My ears are no indication of my interest. I can’t control them.”
“That,” Summer said, stroking a fingertip along one edge, “is exactly why they are an indicator.” Delicately, she cupped a hand around one ear, brushing upward, smiling at the softness. Long, slow strokes along the length of the ear, while her other hand, arm encased in its cast, buried itself in Tony’s hair, fingertips rubbing his scalp. “So beautiful,” she murmured.
Summer’s mouth fell open. “You … have … kitty … ears!” Her voice rose higher on each successive word. “…At least this is a nice kind of anon?” She pushed herself upright on the couch, starting to laugh, clutching her middle. Helios headbutted Tony’s chin and purred at full volume. “Come here,” Summer finally gasped, waving a hand.
Tony offered her an entirely unfeigned pout and he was, for possibly the first time in his adult life, actually blushing. Albeit very faintly. “I don’t think I want to,” he groused in reply, and turned his attention to the cat, dropping his hat for the moment so he had a free hand to scratch Helios’s ears.
“If you come over here I can pet you,” she coaxed. “You don’t want what you’re giving Helios? He’s a spoiled kitty.” Helios lolled his head back into Tony’s hand, blue eyes slitting closed, and Summer rolled her eyes. “I’m all wounded in the line of duty, and you pay more attention to the giant furball than me. How is this my life?” But she smiled while she said it.
He was trying to seem like he was ignoring her, but at the mention of petting, his ears swiveled upright, facing her direct, belying his supposed lack of attention. “But the fur ball isn’t laughing at me, and he purrs,” he replied, now arguing just for argument’s sake, rather than any real irritation, even if he still seemed slightly embarrassed.
Summer bit her lips, trying not to laugh again. It made her sides hurt. “You can bring him with you, you know,” she pointed out. “It’ll be like a petting circle. Besides, Helios doesn’t even laugh at himself. Come on … I can see your ears twitching. And you know I like to play with your hair.”